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COVID-19 Student Well-Being During School Re-Entry: Wave 1 Data

Thu, April 8, 2:45 to 4:15pm EDT (2:45 to 4:15pm EDT), Virtual

Abstract

Recent reports and surveys completed during the pandemic have provided troubling information regarding how students are coping with and adapting to school closures, physical distancing, and quarantined time at home. Reports of food insecurity, gaps in math and literacy skills, unreliable internet access, and precarious housing situations are the new reality (Van Lancker & Parolin, 2020), while others “anticipate” that children and youth may experience increased stress and anxiety related to the COVID-19 pandemic (Orgiles et al., 2020; Xie et al., 2020). A recent national survey of Canadian youth (age 10-17) found that many are generally bored (71%), feel quite normal (41%), miss their friends (54%), are academically unmotivated (60%), and are generally disliking of their current social isolation 57% (Korzinski, 2020). With this precarious literature in mind, the primary research question for Wave 1 of this year-long, multi-wave study is: As junior and senior high students re-enter school this Fall amidst COVID-19, what are the self-reported mental health needs and resiliency indicators of students?
Study Purpose and Research Questions: The present study will explore two general questions related to post-COVID-19 school re-entry: 1) What are the resilience factors, mental health indicators, and adaptive behaviours most prominent for students prior to their school re-entry; and 2) How are those resilience, mental health, and adaptive behaviour associated with feelings about COVID-19, protective and physical distancing practices, and general worry about the pandemic?
Sample, Measures, and Data Analysis Plan: Students (age 12-18) were recruited from four metropolitan school districts – two separate (Catholic) and two public – in two major Alberta cities. In addition to various demographic variables (e.g., age, gender, family structure, race/ethnicity, SES), N = 2150 students (at the time of this writing) have completed three major survey elements: 1) COVID-related questions, including concerns for family and personal physical health during COVID-19, worry and stress about COVID-19, and protective behaviours practiced; 2) the Behaviour Intervention Monitoring Assessment System (BIMAS-2; McDougal et al., 2016), a 34-item scale universal screening measure of conduct, negative affect, cognitive/attention, and social and academic functioning; and 3) the Child and Youth Resilience Measure (CYRM-R; Jefferies et al., 2013), a 28-item measure of resiliency based on three subscales: Individual (personal skills), caregiver (physical and psychological caregiving), and context (spiritual, education, cultural). Data analysis strategies will include descriptives (e.g., means, frequencies), between-group differences (i.e., age, gender, school re-entry type), and univariate (i.e., correlation) and multivariate predictive (e.g., multiple regression) analyses. The study will specifically explore moderation of interindividual effects between COVID-related attitudes and behaviours and well-being indicators (i.e., conduct, negative affect) by way of key a priori variables, including racial group and ethnicity, socioeconomic status, gender, age, and resiliency factors.
Implications and Applications: Mental health professionals are appropriately invested in how children and youth return to school following COVID-19. The absence of data on both the strengths (i.e., resilience factors, adaptive behaviours) and risks (i.e., self-reported symptoms) of student makes it incredibly difficult to ethically and accurately provide programming for all learners, including those with diverse learning needs.

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